Feeders for feeding particulate material, such as powder, granular material, carbon dioxide into a flow of transport gas are well known in the art. Such prior art units include a container for holding the particles to be fed, a suction nozzle mounted on the container with an open inlet disposed near the bottom of the container. The suction nozzle is connected to a flow of gas so as to create suction at the nozzle inlet. The container is configured so as to direct the particles toward and into the inlet end of the suction nozzle.
With such conventional feeders, which are constructed in a way only to utilize the suction force present at the inlet end of the nozzle to draw in adjacent particles, the suction nozzle can become clogged by the particles, thereby reducing the efficiency of the feeder. In some instances, the particles become unable to flow into the inlet of the suction nozzle, instead collecting in the vicinity thereof.